No, the real question is how many countless lives have actually been saved by this. Consider this scenario:

Bobby Ericson, 9, is playing in his yard. He kicks the softball and runs out into the street to retrieve it. What he doesn't know is that Douglas Macavoy, 34, is speeding up the residential street, which has a 25-mile-per-hour limit, at 43 miles per hour. Mr. Macavoy is going that fast because he just finished running the red light at the previous intersection, which had started turning yellow even as he approached it. However, seeing no camera on the pole, he floored the accelerator and ran the light. Now, as he rounds the Pete's Plumbing van parked on the curve, he's shocked to find little sandy-haired Bobby crouching in the street right in front of him. And, splat, just like that, two lives are irreparably destroyed -- Bobby is paralyzed from the neck down for the rest of his life. Mr. Macavoy is in jail. His wife leaves him after a few months after starting an affair with his probation officer. She takes his children. Despondent, alone, he attempts to take his own life by jumping out a window in a ramshackle motel, but he lands on a pedestrian and breaks her neck. Now he's in jail again, only for murder this time. And all he can think on those long nights as he's gripped in Bubba's sweaty embrace is: If only I had stopped for that light. If only there had been a camera, I would have stopped for that life.

Would you seriously, subby, weigh a little bit of property damage, a bent fender, against these two shattered lives. What's one million dollars when compared to infinite suffering and shattered lives? Next time, remember Mr. Macavoy's sad tale before you post.

SurelyShirley:In beautiful Oregon, on the other hand, registration fees are $86 for two years for any passenger vehicle.

Why why do you say things like that! Oh wait... yes everyone, the man is wrong he meant $860 every six months. Serious, what ever you do, do not move to Oregon, taxes are insane, the place is overrun with expat Californians driving their prius's at 45 in the left lane, and it rains 342 days a year.

Job Creator:Chevello: Jument: Putting aside the issue of whether or not cameras are good, people who slam on their brakes follow too closely and cause a collision because of red light cameras ARE FARKING IDIOTS.

Do you really think risking the destruction of your car and your health is worth it to avoid a petty ticket just to pretend you are drafting? Grow a brain, morans.

What you meant to say.

Oh look, I think we found the farkstick that pulls into the left lane of an expressway at 50mph because he is a frustrated traffic cop.

/What I meant to say

Um, nope but thanks for playing. I think we have a few lovely parting gifts for you. How about a nice aggressive driving ticket and a personal injury lawsuit? Ohh, and let's not forget the wonderful increase in insurance rates because everyone knows that in almost all circumstances, a rearend accident is the fault of the rear car. Have fun out there but remember, not everyone knows the length of every yellow they are approaching.

mjohnson71:Slaxl: tallguywithglasseson: Replace them all with roundabouts!

//runs

I love roundabouts.

That is all.

You want to see people freak for no reason? Just watch your city, county or state transportation department propose a roundabout. You'd think they were going to build a child molester halfway house in the neighborhood with how angry people get.

Get over it folks: roundabouts are more efficient and safer than intersections.

It isn't the roundabouts I hate, it's those mountains that come out of the sky and just stand there.

JerkStore:Sadly, red light cameras are a solution to a problem that doesn't really exist. Sure, we can all agree that running red lights is bad, but it's nowhere near an epidemic and a vast, vast majority of drivers stop for red lights.

One of the unwritten rules of driving in Jacksonville FL is to wait two to three seconds after you light turns green for the drivers to finish running their red light.

jjorsett:Land Ark: Actually, I find intersections with crosswalks that have signals that count down to be perfect for knowing if I will be able to cleanly make the intersection or if I should start slowing down knowing I won't make it.

YOU HAVE FIFTEEN SECONDS TO CROSS! YOU HAVE TEN SECONDS TO CROSS! FIVE! ... FOUR! ...

Land Ark:Actually, I find intersections with crosswalks that have signals that count down to be perfect for knowing if I will be able to cleanly make the intersection or if I should start slowing down knowing I won't make it.

YOU HAVE FIFTEEN SECONDS TO CROSS! YOU HAVE TEN SECONDS TO CROSS! FIVE! ... FOUR! ...

Politicians just love their money. I mean they REALLY love their money.Given sufficient money, you can make a politician do anything you want. Especially if it is for "safety" (and" campaign contributions")

Have it start going up halfway in the yellow, so that if you feel the bump (which is now a speed bump by then) you know that you really pushed your luck.

For those that need to really make it across, then they floor it before it reaches the high point and are able to jump in Dukes of Hazard style, which would make them go over any other traffic anyways.

Once red, the barrier is fully erect and some jolly restraining teeth/spikes come out of it, ensuring that when they start going down again (this occurs in perspective of the other side's barriers starting to raise, that no early birds would start edging over the line as it would mean that their tires would be slashed.

Once the light goes green, the teeth/spikes go down and people can go forth.

I have personally witnessed this phenomena since the red light cameras have been installed in my area. Hell, I feel a quick twinge of anxiety every time a light goes yellow just before I cross the line, and I have above average driving and riding capabilities thanks to race experience. I can comprehend, from a psychological point of view, why average joe or jane stomps the brakes and skids to a stop - because they aren't good at what they're doing and can't judge whether they'll cross that line before the light goes red. Then the person who is following too close behind or having a lapse of concentration slams into them, causing thousands in injuries and property damage over the scare provided by a $150 ticket.

The fundamental flaw with the logic behind red light cameras is that they generate revenue when the drivers are unsafe and generate none when the drivers do what they should; this is a similar logical error to the for-profit (privatised) prisons, which make more money when more criminals exist.

The correct way to make the roads safer is through stricter licensing requirements and more driver training, NOT punishing silly mistakes like crossing the line .10 seconds too late. The dangerous red light runners are the ones who blow it after the light has gone red and t-bone the cars that are already moving in the other lanes, not the ones that get the majority of the tickets; the guys who cross the line long before the other lights go green.